


If You Tame Me

by Anzieizna



Series: Short stories [3]
Category: Original Work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-21
Updated: 2019-05-21
Packaged: 2020-03-09 07:35:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,966
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18912451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anzieizna/pseuds/Anzieizna
Summary: A fox in the city seeks a meal.





	1. Chapter 1

The sun had lowered long ago in the town and the moon was glowing in the sky, its silvery light helping to brighten the streets under it. The roads were mostly empty, only the occasional car whizzing past with only one focus: to get home on this late night.

A loud crash rung through the area, causing a few barks to erupt from the distance.

A red creature winced as he stood before a toppled trash can, pressing his ears to the back of his head as the barking continued. It echoed in the alley he was in, making it even more unbearable. It finally ceased, and the fox let out a sigh of relief.

“Finally, those rabbit-brains shut up,” he muttered to himself. He dug through the rubbish from the bin, picking through plastic and paper until he found a box of leftover food. It had gone cold long ago, but food was food, so he pulled it out with his teeth.

It took a few minutes to eat the residue that remained in the box. When he finished his stomach still begged for food with a rumble. The fox growled at his own body, shaking his head to clear his thoughts as he continued scuffling through the bin. He bit through a bag, sticking his nose in and recoiling when an evil smell made it to his senses. Stepping away from that part of the bin, he spotted a see-through containment of berries. The animal almost jumped towards it, using his claws to slash it open.

“Why would someone throw this away?” he chided the owner of the berries, licking his lips. He could feel the fruit make its way down his throat, settling a warm feeling in his body that he hadn’t experienced for a couple of days.

He could barely remember the last time he ate – that was a lie, it was a couple of days ago and he was dramatic -, the memory of a hollow stomach very clear in his mind. Winter was approaching soon, as well, and the prey in the forest was already scarce enough that he spent almost every week in the town. The walk between alleys was long and tough, and finding any edible food was also a challenge. At least he was alone – if he had a mate or a kit he’d have to share with them, and he barely had enough to eat to fill his own stomach!

There was a rattling sound and the fox jolted, spring around into a crouching position, fangs flaring and claws extended. When he saw his ‘opponent’, however, he paused short.

There was a fat, fluffy cat lounged across the high-fence. Her coat was white and cleaned, not a knot in sight as she purred contently, cuddling closer to the fence below her. The fox bit back a growl, eyes narrowed as he watched the pampered feline ignore him as though she didn’t know he was there.

“Hello, cat,” he almost growled, turning his back on her. His guard was not lowered, however, and he could hear every movement with his pointed ears. The she-cat sat up, smirk in place as he began digging through the bin once more.

“Jake actually responds, for once!” the cat meowed, sitting up. “Never thought I’d be granted the pleasure.”

“Don’t think much of it, cat,” the fox spat back, ignoring the name she addressed him with. The neighbourhood called him ‘Jake’ despite the fact he never gave them a name.

“Oh, I won’t,” the cat retorted, sliding down from the fence and landing perfectly on the ground. The fox’s eyes caught her legs for a second before he shook his head and turned around, shoving his snout further into the metal bin. “I don’t like to think about you at all, to be honest.”

The animal paused as a scent entered his nose, and he could faintly feel his tail waggling behind him without permission. He dug deeper into the darkness, head turning from side to side as he continued speaking. “Then I’m curious as to what you’re still doing here.”

Without waiting for a response, the fox heaved an entire chicken leg out from the bin, landing it before his paws and staring at it with a grin.

The cat smirked. She pointed with her tail-tip, “That’s why.”

The fox narrowed his eyes at the white she-cat for a moment, trying to figure out if she was insulting him, but eventually the need for hunger won over the need for pride and he plunged his teeth into the meat, ripping it apart and savouring the juices that flowed into his mouth. “What’s this miracle?” he asked himself in awe.

The cat, however, heard, and paused her grooming to glance at him. “Thanksgiving. It’s some tradition humans do, and that looks like leftovers,” she added when the fox gave her a raised eyebrow.

“Whatever it is, it’s the most I’ve had in days!” he confessed, forgetting about the house cat in front of him as he ripped into the leg, chewing on the meat in satisfaction.

The she-cat had a face of disgust, her muzzle lowered and her nose twitching along with narrowed blue eyes. “Or you can just, you know, live with humans,” she suggested.

The fox laughed dryly.

“Or at least hunt off in the woods!” the cat exclaimed, fur flaring up in indignation. “Away from me!”

“This is why nobody takes you seriously, kitty.” The fox rolled his eyes and continued eating.

“What? What did I say?”

He paused, eyes switching between the cat and the food, relenting with a sigh. “Try spending a month out in the wild yourself. Tell me how that goes. Not so eager now, huh?” he sneered as the cat recoiled.

“Oh, so you think you’re now some kind of untouchable-lion?” When her only response was a confident smirk, she seemed to fume even more. “You know, one of these days you’ll be caught and no one will be there to help you.”

“Alright, firstly,” the fox began with a cocky tone, “I’m not going to get caught. And second, I’ve never needed anyone before, and I’m not about to start.”

The she-cat growled at that. “Your pride will be the death of us all.” He shrugged in return.

A few minutes of silence – pure, golden, heavenly silence – passed where the cat shut up and left the fox in peace. He had almost finished eating the chicken leg when the white feline spoke.

“Felix,” she said.

The fox’s head shot up.

His gaze bore into her fur as a delighted grin stretched across her face. “Oh! I remembered it!” Her only response was the distant barking of humans that were wandering around the town, but the fox before her was as silent as ever. “That’s your name, right? I remember a vixen calling you that,” she explained.

Said fox stood still, continuing to stare at the cat. It got to the point where the she-cat was squirming in place, feeling naked under his gaze. Suddenly, he snapped out of it, and stalked past her.

The she-cat sat in place for a few moments before her body caught up with her mind and she took after the fox, catching him just as he stepped out of the alleyway.

“Hey! Where are you going?!” she yowled.

With no warning, the fox turned back on her, his large, muscled body looming over her. His fur was matted and skinny from days of no food, but the muscles were clear under his skin, and his brown eyes glowed with intensity. His fangs were as sharp as ever, and bared at her in this moment, freezing the cat on her paws.

“Back. Off.”

With a growl he stormed off, leading an untold path, leaving a frozen cat in his wake.


	2. Chapter 2

Pikatii’s eyes were shut tight and light snores made past her mouth. Her paw had fallen to the ground, the rest of her head on the limb and she probably swallowed a few flies whilst she was sleeping. The breeze was gentle and cool. Her ears flopped to the side and the black tip of her tail brushed gently against her nose, making it twitch as she continued to doze atop the cool sand.

Suddenly there was a hissing sound beside her and Pikatii’s ears quickly jerked, pulling the rest of her body with them. “Ugh – wah, weh…”

“Pikatii!” the hissing returned. The vixen snorted into sense, her eyes still crinkled together and a drop of saliva plastered to her chin.

A face before her recoiled at the sigh a bit, brown eyes raising to the top with a hushed mumble. The glare returned to the young fox. “Get up, Pikatii!”

Pikatii blinked as darkness swamped her vision, eventually clearing more until she could see the rough rock surrounding her. The den was mostly empty except a few foxes who were padding past her to the exit, which was visible by a silver light shining through it.

Pikatii stood up, yawning as she stretched her muscles. Her fluffy paw-pads softened the feel of rock as she walked forward, shaking her head as she tried to disperse any sleepiness that refused to go away.

The cold hit her as soon as she stepped out and she let out another yawn, stretching short legs behind her as she walked towards the group of foxes before her. Lono was a couple of tail-lengths away from the skulk, giving brief orders as usual. Most of the foxes set out themselves, but a few stayed behind and talked whilst grooming themselves.

Another pale fox jumped forward, almost crashing with Pikatii. “Oh! Sorry, Tii.” she winced as the vixen stumbled backwards.

“No, it’s okay, Maatalii.” She nodded at her friend, a large ear flicking over to see Lono groan and roll her eyes as she addressed one of her skulk-mates. “Who spit on her fur?”

Maatalii’s head turned to follow Pikatii’s gaze, and she sighed when she saw the topic of conversation. “She’s been like that all evening. Stress with the pregnant vixen, I guess.” She pointed her nose towards two foxes sitting close together, their tails wrapped around each other.

“Ugh – I know, right? She yelled at me when I woke up,” Pikatii moaned, shaking her head as she stared up into the stares.

An amused shine entered Maatalii’s eyes and the other fox narrowed her eyes. “Well, to be fair, you did sleep in later than everybody else.”

“Whose side are you on, cactus?” Pikatii scowled, brow furrowed as she stared at Maatalii. Said vixen giggled, shaking her head as though trying to be serious.

“I feel like you’ve been spending too much time with Haku,” she said, padding past her and further away from the skulk of fennec foxes.

“I don’t owe my snarky behaviour to anyone!” Pikatii exclaimed. “Especially Haku. That reynard is the most foolish fox I’ve ever met if he thinks he’s good at anything,” she retorted. Maatalii chortled as the two continued to make their way along the sand, distant noises of the wind echoing behind their words.

The foxes were now a few tail-lengths behind them, their soft chatter quieting down and becoming white noise. Pikatii and Maatalii wandered around, their ears perking from side to side as they listened for little scurrying under the ground. They passed a few plants and rocks, taking small snacks when their stomachs growled in the night.

“You eat like a kit,” Maatalii pointed out, her ears pinned back to her head and brow lowered when her friend pulled a few berries from a small bush, forcing the entire plant to shake when she sprung the berry from its branch.

“It’s alright,” Pikatii said, licking her lips as she pulled more berries from the bush. “I like kits.” 

“Nooo,” Maatalii sing-songed, drawing out the ‘o’ as she tilted her head. “You like corrupting kits with your evil personality and mischievous thoughts!” She finished with a fond shake of her head, already walking away as Pikatii’s head shot upwards.

“Maatalii!” the vixen cried, pretending to recoil. She widened her eyes and lowered hear ears, hovering on her haunches as her friend glances over her shoulder with a smirk. “How could you ever think such a thing? To call me evil! My heart is truly broken, Maat. Broken!” she yelled, falling to the ground and cradling her chest as though she was in great pain.

Maatalii laughed loudly, rolling her eyes as she jumped back to the fox sprawled across the ground. “Get up, you oaf,” she hit Pikatii with her tail. “We need to get to hunting.”

“Aww! Come on, Maat!” Pikatii got up and followed her, yowling in a low tone. “You never let me do anything fun."

“Fun?” Maatalii echoed. “I’m always the one who bails you out of trouble when you do something stupid!”

“That’s a matter of perspective,” Pikatii informed her as she caught up. “My plans are actually very carefully calculated and performed. Every part is taken into careful precision, the outcome taken into every account-“

“It always ends with someone yelling at you and me having to come up with some lame excuse,” Maatalii interrupted her.

Pikatii scrunched her nose playfully. “You know, you don’t sound very thankful, right now.”

“Thankful? For what?!” Maatalii cried through a dry laugh.

Pikatii’s mind grew blank for a response, but she quickly continued talking to cover up her stumble. “I don’t have to answer to you, Maatalii. I’m older and more mature.”

Maatalii rolled her eyes as she paused in her marching. “Okay, first, you’re not older –“

“Only by a few months!”

“- and secondly, as far as I’m concerned, copying what another fox says in a stupid, high-pitched voice isn’t ‘mature’.” There was a tone of amusement in her voice and she glanced behind her at the frowning vixen. Pikatii’s gaze was steadied on her, narrowed and suspicious as though she was keeping a secret.

“I’ll have you know, Kaimi was being extremely annoying that day – more than usual, that is.” Pikatii defended herself.

“Ah yes,” Maatalii nodded. “And the mature response to that is to mimic what he says in a dumb voice. Yes, I understand now. How could I ever mistake your actions as depreciating or harming? Apologies, oh-so-great Pikatii, please forgive me.”

Pikatii stared with wide eyes as her friend finished. She was struck to her spot, wind carrying past her fur and her ears flapping at the force. “… I think you’ve been hanging around me too much.”

Maatalii giggled. “You are a bad influence, as I’ve said before.” The vixen suddenly stopped, her ears alert and wide.

Pikatii perked her own and sniffed, catching the faint hint of a jerboa in the air. With a nod, she let Maatalii go after it, though it was quite unnecessary, as the fox had already set off towards some trees in the distance, her nose low to the ground and picking up dots of pale sand as she walked. A few minutes passed as Maatalii sniffed, following the scent to the creature to the bottom of a tree. She tore her claws into the tough sand, hissing at the lingering heat that the sun left, no-doubt. A few more minutes passed as Pikatii sat behind her friend, drawing a tongue over her peachy coat in broad strokes.

“Aha!” the older fox barked in triumph, increasing her digging. A few seconds past as Maatalii’s paws flew wildly and Pikatii raised her nose to the air again, muscles stiffening when she couldn’t smell the jerboa under the root anymore.

“Maat!” she hissed, ears quickly switching from side to side to locate the prey. Her nose picked up the scent of the creature and she sprung forward, jumping away from her friend and towards a set of dying brambles. As she approached, the vixen could see a small, furry object cowering behind another root, beginning to dig a tunnel into the side once more.

“Oh, no, you don’t,” Pikatii growled to herself. She crouched on her haunches before firing at the jerboa, mouth open and fangs flaring. The small animal squeaked in alarm, skipping away on its lengthy legs, but Pikatii was faster and managed to push her teeth to its neck before it could get away.

She lifted her head. The limp body was hanging from her mouth, and she turned back to Maatalii with a grin.

The vixen saw the prey in her mouth and did a double take, her brown eyes shifting from the tunnel she was digging up and the jerboa in her friend’s mouth. Finally, she relented with a sigh, treading with a small frown on her face. “I always forget to check for a second tunnel entrance,” she hissed quietly.

“It’s alright,” Pikatii said reassuringly, taking the opportunity to show-off by its tail. “Not everyone of us is a natural born hunter, Maatalii.” Her voice was teasing and low. Maatalii clearly didn’t appreciate it, and slapped the back of her friend’s head with her tail. Pikatii snorted in response. “If you want to kill me, you’re going to have to try harder than that.”

“Har. Har,” Maatalii droned. With a whimper, Pikatii gently stroked the fox’s back with her tail.

“Seriously, Maat. It’s fine. You were the one to actually smell the prey,” she reminded her friend. Maatalii’s eyes lifted to glare at Pikatii, but her gaze quickly softened when she saw the dopey smile Pikatii was giving her. She nodded with a sigh, the crinkles from her eyes fading away as she swiped a tongue around her mouth.

“And now: we feast!” Pikatii announced in an overly-dramatic voice. Maatalii’s only response was a snort before she dug into the jerboa with a hungry growl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some research notes:
> 
> Pikatii is not a real name, rather a combination of names. Maatalii is a real name but I can't remember what it means.   
> All the names of the foxes are African, I do believe, but I wrote this so long ago I don't remember anything.

**Author's Note:**

> Title comes from the quote, "If you tame me, then we shall need each other."
> 
> This was intended to be part of a series about a bunch of foxes who escape a zoo and go on an adventure during my "fox phase" but it was terribly planned so it all went to shit.
> 
> Some research notes:
> 
> "Your pride will be the death of us all," is a reference to Burr's line in Hamilton the Musical.  
> Felix is a red fox, which live in cities and almost entirely life off trash from humans.


End file.
